Hot Topics:

It's worth the wait

Holloman squadron returns home after stint in Asia

Alamogordo Daily NewsBy Janessa Maxilom, Staff Writer

Posted:
01/29/2013 10:48:11 PM MST

Click photo to enlarge

Maj. Brandon Tellez, an F-22 Raptor pilot with the 7th Fighter Squadron, and his wife Maj. Heather Tellez and their son were reunited Monday after Brandon was deployed to southwest Asia. Brandon was deployed for about nine months.

It was a short, yet exciting, walk for the returning airmen from the aircraft ramp to the crowd of people gathered around the exit to the flightline. Some were reunited with their spouses and friends, while others held their children for the very first time, but all were happy to be home.

"While being deployed refocuses you on the mission, it starts to wear on people," said Lt. Col. Larry Broadwell, 7FS commander. "But at some point you need to come home, you need to recharge the batteries, you need to go through a normal training cycle and do things at home with the family."

Croft said that the team did many new things with other foreign countries in Soutwest Asia.

Advertisement

The team also performed some joint operations, he said.

"The F-22 is really a strategic asset for our country," Croft said.

Broadwell was enthusiastic about the success of the mission.

"I am extremely proud of the 7FS and the 49th Maintenance Group. They set a string of firsts for the F-22," he said. "They did it from ground zero, and they did it for almost 10 months. When the nation called and they needed someone to stand as a significant deterrent force in the Central Command area of responsibility, the 49th Wing and the F-22s from here did it."

Croft said that it is a system the Air Force uses to let folks know they have the capability to operate missions in distant lands.

The squadron flew back from the deployment through Lajes Air Field in the Azores, Portugal, located off the coast of northwest Africa.

"Six F-22s arrived with six pilots on them, and another three pilots on the KC-135 tanker that escorted them here from New Hampshire," Croft said about some of the troops returning from deployment. "We had a C-17 arrive with about 33 folks on it. And then the 767 contract carrier brought in about another 135, so about 170 arrived today."

Croft said about 30 more people will return home Wednesday as well.

"So, the entire redeployment is about 200 folks," he said.

According to Croft, the troops will reconstitute at Holloman for about two weeks before they start reflying the F-22s even more. The squadron will also be retraining over the next couple of months.

"So, you'll see the F-22 activity pick up in the next year," Croft said. "More so than it has been since last March."

There will possibly be more sonic booms as the F-22s start flying more routinely, he said.

Holloman officials will continue to send out the "Sound of Freedom" schedule to let citizens of the surrounding communities know in advance about the possibility of sonic booms.

"The times will remain the same, but the number will increase," Croft said. "The flying windows won't really change, but we haven't done night flying for a little while, so we will be doing a little bit more of that."Airman 1st Class Michael Shoemaker, of the 49th Wing Public Affairs Office, contributed to this story. Contact Janessa Maxilom at jmaxilom@alamogordonews.com. Follow her on Twitter @janessa_speaks